“Li Mingshan! What are you doing here!? Don’t tell me you accidentally took the wrong train!”
It was Su Xixia’s voice.
She walked over from the entrance on the other side, her short hair bouncing with her heavy footsteps, her aura overbearing.
‘Isn’t she afraid of going out? Or is she so angry that she hasn’t had time to feel afraid?’
I should have replied to her messages sooner…
“I, Xiao Ji and I came to the Ancient City Gate to get some air! Xixia, I’m sorry for making you worry.”
“Me? Worried? I’m beyond angry! I’ve been waiting for you at home this whole time!”
She stood in front of me and looked up, her eyes terrifyingly red.
“I got too caught up in chatting with Xiao Ji… and I forgot to reply to you.”
I subconsciously avoided her gaze.
“Forgot me? You said you forgot about me?! I really—!”
Seeing her raised hand, I braced myself for a slap, but that small hand never swung down.
“?”
“Uh, Miss Su. We brothers were chatting about some man stuff, and it got pretty heated. When a man gets passionate, he makes mistakes, haha!”
Xiao Ji tried to persuade her from the side, cleverly hiding his safety helmet behind his back.
“You’re calling me Miss Su? I remember you called someone ‘sister-in-law’ at the very beginning, right? Who was that? An Zhi?”
His eyes widened.
He looked at me, then scratched his face, instantly defeated.
Looking back, when the three of us first met, his tongue seemed to have slipped.
Su Xixia had remembered such a detail until now.
She hadn’t asked me until I confessed.
Was she being considerate?
She really hides it well.
I felt her fearsomeness even more deeply.
“Xixia, I’m ready to go back. Let’s head back together first, okay?”
Feeling the eager gazes of the passersby, I tried to grab her small hand, but she dodged it.
“I searched so hard for you… first I went to your company to ask, then I came to this Nanhuan Station, and I walked through every single entrance, but I just couldn’t find you! You didn’t even reply to my messages! Do you have any idea how angry I am? I’m not familiar with Su City, and I only recently learned how to take the subway. You’re all I have here! Do you understand—!?”
She wiped away the tears rolling from the corners of her eyes and pushed my chest, forcing me back a few steps and nearly bumping into a pedestrian.
“I know… I’m sorry. I even made you risk coming outside. I’ll agree to whatever you want to do after we get back, okay? Come, wipe your tears. Don’t cry.”
I took out a prepared tissue and approached her trepidatiously, touching her soft cheek.
This should be enough…
Please, stop being angry.
I, who had originally felt wronged, was filled with apology after realizing the fact that I had come to see An Zhi in secret.
‘What was I thinking… I clearly didn’t want to hurt anyone, but I still couldn’t help myself…’
“You said… you’ll listen to me after we get back?” she choked out.
“Yes, I’ll listen to you.”
I gathered my courage and hugged her.
She finally began to calm down slowly, as if she had only just realized she was outdoors, and her soft body began to tremble.
“Hey, hey, hey… is this really okay?”
Xiao Ji patted my shoulder.
I noticed his brows were slightly furrowed, and I suddenly felt that things were bad.
“Xiao Ji, that’s enough.”
“What do you mean ‘enough’? Miss Su, since you know about An Zhi, I’ll just say it straight. An Zhi isn’t as hot-tempered as you, shouting and making a scene. Brother Li also has his own personal matters; he needs his private space. You’re PUA-ing Brother Li!”
As Xiao Ji spoke, his face wore a serious expression that was rare for him.
‘Why wasn’t he this sharp with his own affairs?’
“Xiao Ji!”
I spoke up to stop him and shook my head.
“I don’t listen to the words of an outsider.” Su Xixia’s voice was filled with grievance. “I do the laundry, buy the groceries, cook the meals, and even clean the house. My body, too… would An Zhi do those things? Xiao Ji, you don’t need to answer me. I’m not listening.”
“An Zhi hasn’t come back, and she hasn’t lived with Brother Li. But I know she…”
Sensing that Xiao Ji was about to say something that shouldn’t be said, I spoke up again, decisively.
“Alright, stop talking. I’ll handle it. Thank you, Xiao Ji. Why don’t you check if Senior is looking for you?”
Xiao Ji was stunned for a moment.
His stiff face instantly relaxed.
He took out his phone, looked at it, and tapped his own forehead.
“Oh, she really was looking for me! Then I’ll go reply to her first. See you later.”
After saying that, he took his phone and walked away toward the entrance.
Watching his retreating back, I finally breathed a sigh of relief and led the once-again “docile” Su Xixia into the subway station.
***
Steaming water vapor filled my small home. I was wet all over, but it felt very warm.
I sat at the head of the bed.
The light passed through the water mist and shone on my open hands.
In between them were Su Xixia’s fair and tender feet, so damp they seemed to have an oily sheen.
“How is it? Are you still not used to it?”
Her gentle tone was the complete opposite of how she had been at the station.
“Not… not yet.”
I held the pair of feet, my heart still racing.
‘Don’t get it wrong; we aren’t doing anything perverted…’
After returning home and hearing the request she made, I had actually felt relieved instead.
“How rude. I’ve never set foot on the ground. These feet haven’t suffered since birth; they look so clean and beautiful. And yet you’re still afraid! After you get used to it, you must… perform that foot-kissing ritual.”
“Okay… as long as it isn’t a ** ritual.”
I observed the slightly arched pink insteps and the toes that were as red as agate.
They truly were a pair of feet without flaws… they didn’t lack the tenderness of a young girl, yet they had the curves of a mature woman’s soles.
One could tell she had taken special care to protect them when she exercised.
Still, I couldn’t help but feel nervous.
The scene of being stepped on by these feet in the past still flickered in my mind.
But since I had promised her, I had to overcome it…
‘Doesn’t she feel shy at all?’
I met her eyes. She only gave a few soft “Hmph, hmph” chuckles, her gaze mixed with a seductive, inviting look.
“After you finish the kiss, remember to say that you won’t leave me without a word ever again. If you say it, I’ll give you a re~ward~… Guess what I’m wearing under my clothes?”
“I… I understand…”
Every time I heard her say such seductive words, my body would betray me and react.
After that confession, my resistance had somehow dropped drastically.
I understood everything Xiao Ji had said earlier.
I was becoming increasingly aware that she was dangerous.
But considering what she had done for me…
No, there was also the sense of using that body to satisfy my desires… I was also despicable.
Fear, gratitude, and demand reached a delicate balance in my heart.
If there was anything that could break this balance, it was only the feeling for An Zhi—
No, I can’t think about that right now.
Snapping back to reality, the feet in front of me no longer felt as oppressive as before.
Finally, I began to feel their beauty and allure.
When my fingertips brushed against the soles of her feet, she let out a small cry.
Taking this opportunity, I raised my hand and imprinted a kiss on that clean instep.
“Whoa! You… why did you kiss me without giving me any mental preparation first…” She was unexpectedly flustered.
“From now on, I won’t leave you without a word again. I promise.”
While she was flustered, I made my promise.
I saw those feet begin to turn a slight red, starting from the tips of the toes.
She quickly pulled her legs back, crawled in front of me to sit up, and placed her index finger in the center of my lower lip.
“Li Mingshan, you’d better keep your word! Do you understand?”
“Yeah.”
Seeing me nod, a gratified smile appeared on her face.
She grabbed the zipper of the jacket over her chest.
*Zip—*
Within the small portion of the jacket she opened, skin as smooth as yogurt jelly was revealed, seemingly steaming with heat.
“Hehe.”
She gave a seductive smile.
“Then, next, it’s time to give you some… re~ward~s.”
I tried to act disinterested, but unfortunately, under her overwhelming offensive, my defenses shattered in a single second.
***
Late at night, once Su Xixia beside me began to make steady *Sss—haa—* breathing sounds, I reached under my pillow.
Only then did I remember that I had already hidden the group photo in the desk drawer.
What did the tear stains I saw on An Zhi’s face through the crack in the practice room door mean?
I didn’t know. I didn’t know anything about her!
I had never thought of putting in all my effort to get close to her.
I only imagined how well she was doing and secretly comforted myself.
Because her company had those kinds of strict regulations, I chose to remain obediently silent, fearing I would affect her.
What was she thinking?
I had never sought to find out about such things.
Even though I knew about my own inferiority complex and cowardice and was plagued by them, even now, I still didn’t have the courage to change…
Perhaps this is what it means to be human.
Everyone has an enemy named “Self.”
‘I should try to forget. Just indulging in Su Xixia’s embrace like this is the simplest choice…’
My head hurt.
Bursts of pain spreading from the depths of my brain made it difficult for me to fall asleep.